Save Our Springs Alliance. Help SOS Keep Barton Springs Booze Free. Keep that Springs Natural Hippie Aura alive!

Dear Austin City Council Members and Planning Commissioners,

As a local who was born and raised in Austin, I love Barton Springs! It along with the Hike and Bike Trail are the 2 Jewells of Austin.

I am also 2x season pass Austin Recreation swimmer Buyer. I really enjoy this Season Pass option, as I get to skip to lines. I also love Deep Eddy Pool and all the City of Austin's public Pools.

I love the fact that NO dogs are allowed inside of Barton Springs Pool! I was attacked by a dog as an infant child and have a so/so relationship with dogs to this day.

One of the JOYS of Barton Springs is its "peaceful serenity" in the middle of a bustling city. No dogs No Alcohol. It is a peaceful, Zen-vibe, and heck I even enjoy the freedom "clothes" optional elements as well.

It is easy enough to get FOOD and DRINKS and alcohol on Barton Springs Road, for example Barton Springs Saloon, Baby A's restaurant and their Purple Margaritas, Austin EastCiders, etc. so I feel another booze option so CLOSE in proximity to Barton Springs would ruin the vibe.

Barton Springs is a hippie, natural water sanctuary of sobriety.

I ask that you vote AGAINST the proposed Conditional Use Permit that would allow the sale and consumption of alcohol next to Barton Springs Pool. Barton Springs should remain a safe space for families and children to swim and to learn about and connect with nature.

Sincerely,

George Vance McGee

georgevance@gmail.com

512.657.9281

ALCOHOL SALES AT BARTON SPRINGS POOL? On Thursday, June 17th, at 6pm, the Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) will be hosting a virtual meeting to discuss their proposal to allow the sale of beer and wine at Zilker Café, which is immediately outside the northern gates of Barton Springs Pool. The Save Our Springs Alliance (SOS) will be formally opposing this request, and we need your help with the following: Please sign up and attend PARD's virtual meeting; and Please send an email to the Austin City Council and Planning Commission opposing the proposed permit that would allow alcohol sales at Barton Springs Pool. Austinites of all ages—families with and without children—attend Barton Springs Pool. With as refreshing and enjoyable a day at Barton Springs Pool can be, it is somewhat easy to forget what Barton Springs offers to our city. It is an immersive educational space, where children have their first opportunity to swim alongside native fish, turtles, and other wildlife. It is an outdoor museum, where Austin newcomers learn about the Edwards Aquifer and our responsibility to protect it. And, most importantly, it is an endangered species habitat for the Barton Springs and Austin Blind Salamanders. Being able to use Barton Springs to swim, relax, and connect with nature is a collective privilege that we all share. But, our continued ability to use the springs for these purposes is dependent upon respecting and protecting it from the negative consequences of human activity. Over the last several years, attendance at Barton Springs Pool has skyrocketed. Over a million people visit the pool throughout the year—and this is without the sale of alcohol. Several hundred thousand more visit the “Free Side” or “Barking Springs,” downstream of the pool, where overcrowding and uncontrolled access has created major problems with streambank erosion. The City does not need to add alcohol sales as an attraction to continue to recruit visitors. The pool is already over capacity, and we need to be better managing its use, as well as the use of Barton Creek and Zilker Park. Putting a bar next to Barton Springs does nothing to help address this overuse—it adds the potential for more noise, trash, and undisciplined human behavior to an area that is overtaxed. SOS is also concerned about the impact of beer and alcohol sales outside the gates will have on the overworked and underpaid Barton Springs Lifeguards. These lifeguards are responsible for overseeing the safety of thousands of swimmers, as well as enforcing the rules that maintain the environmental integrity of the pool. Making alcohol easily accessible to pool visitors adds an unnecessary burden on these lifeguards, requiring them to supervise inebriated visitors. Barton Springs needs to remain a safe and fun experience for all users—salamanders and humans alike. Widespread alcohol consumption is not compatible with this. Please help us by speaking out and sending messages to City leaders opposing this permit. Please Send a tax-deductible donation to SOS Alliance today so that we can continue our water watchdog work  to protect the Edwards Aquifer and Barton Springs. Share this email with friends and colleagues and ask them to stay informed by subscribing to our email newsletter here .

DONATE Save Our Springs Alliance 4701 West Gate Blvd, Building D, Suite 401 | Austin, Texas  78745 (512) 477-2320 | sosinfo@sosalliance.org Follow Us

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While I got your attention. I currently work and pay for my life as a Real Estate Broker Associate in Austin, with the Austin Silent Market Brokerage. I live in a condo with my fiance in Travis Heights, SoCo. If you have any questions, inquiries about Austin and Central Austin Real Estate, kindly contact me @ 512.657.9281 iphone, georgevance@gmail.com Austin Silent Market